Igloo nears completion

The Fort Jones igloo – which was 31 feet across and about five feet tall when the Daily News last reported on it – has grown to nearly 12 feet tall now and is nearing completion.

John Bowman

On Dec. 28 the Daily News reported on two friends who are building an igloo on the community baseball field in Fort Jones. The snow structure that was 31 feet across and about five feet tall at that time has grown to nearly 12 feet tall now and is nearing completion.

Friends Bubba Hopkins and Mike Gephart say they have been building igloos around Fort Jones since they were kids and the structures have gotten bigger each year. The final height of this year’s igloo is projected to reach about 19 feet. If they reach their goal, the men say their igloo will break the world record.

The Daily News caught up with Hopkins on Thursday to check on the progress of the impressive snow structure. He said construction has been progressing but the variable weather lately has caused a few delays.

“We were making pretty good progress for a while there, but then it got warm and stayed warm for about three days straight. That caused some problems for us,” said Hopkins. He explained that as the warmer days earlier this week stretched on, the wall of the igloo began to soften and sag in a few places. To alleviate the problem the men procured two hydraulic jacks from the legs of an old camper, attached them to some 2-by-4s and fabricated plywood feet for the ends. They were able to wedge these support beams between the floor and the walls and use the hydraulic pump mechanism to push the walls back into place and support them until they re-solidify. A set of scaffolding has also been erected inside the igloo in order to reach the top of the circular wall as it grows skyward.While the warmer weather temporarily weakened the walls of the structure, it also made very soft, heavy snow bricks that were not ideal for the precariously arching walls of the igloo. But Hopkins said Thursday’s lower temperatures have created complications, too.

“It’s almost too cold now,” he explained. “When it’s this cold after the snow melted some and condensed, it just turns to ice and you can’t pack that into good bricks without adding water.” Using a two-gallon garden sprayer, the men are now working on a new round of snow bricks that will sit over night and solidify for use the next day. It’s slow, painstaking work but Hopkins and Gephart are dedicated to making the structure a success.“We’ll get there,” Hopkins said on Thursday as he sprayed the walls with a mist of water. “It’s just taking a little longer than we expected.”

The huge structure sits along Highway 3 on the edge of Fort Jones and has been getting a lot of attention lately. The two men said passers-by are constantly blowing their horns and waving or stopping by to meet the snow builders and take photos of the structure. Last week a TV news crew showed up and a few days ago a nearby preschool class visited for a field trip.

Hopkins said they expect the igloo to be completed by sometime next week, as long as the weather is cooperative.